Expandable and contractible keyboard devices are described, for example, in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/558,866, entitled “Expandable and Contractible Keyboard with Adjustable Key Sizes,” and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2001/0028712, entitled “Expandable and Contractible Keyboard with Adjustable Key Sizes,” each of which is expressly incorporated herein in its entirety by reference thereto.
An expandable and contractible keyboard that includes an elastic web material forming the keytops may undergo substantial narrowing or necking when expanding from the contracted state to the expanded state. Such narrowing or necking is distracting to the user and may subject the keyboard device to contamination by dirt, dust, liquids or other contaminants.
In a formal office setting, a keyboard device may be attached to a data device, such as a desktop computer. However, it is common to use portable data devices away from formal office settings. Other forms of data device include a laptop computer, which may be designed to allow data entry, manipulation and retrieval in almost any location in which the laptop computer may be opened and placed for typing.
A further, even more compact portable data device is the so-called personal digital assistant, or PDA. PDAs typically include a display, which is generally a fraction of the size provided by the display of a laptop or desktop computer but which is fully usable for restricted data handling. The PDA may be configured for input via a stylus, e.g., for tapping on a microsized keyboard on a screen or stroking out alphanumeric characters, e.g., the Graffiti system. Alternatively, the PDA may include a small keyboard with which data is entered by pressing one key at a time, i.e., single-finger typing, e.g., with the forefinger or thumb.
Compact keyboard devices include so-called clamshell devices configured for use, for example, with a cellular phone/PDA combination. Such devices include tiny buttons and a display that may be smaller than typical PDA displays. Since a cellular phone is a wireless device, data access may be permitted in a PDA mode from any location in which satisfactory RF signal transfer is available.
The form factor of a transportable device, e.g., a small cellular phone or slim PDA device, may preclude inclusion of a keyboard device other than a keyboard device that includes very small key buttons. Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a keyboard device that provides a compact transportable size and configuration and that is reconfigurable to provide a size and configuration that permits single-finger typing and/or a full-width, e.g., nominal 10½-inch wide keyboard that permits touch-typing. A full-width keyboard may have, for example, a nominal 19 mm center-to-center spacing with an approximately equal row-to-row spacing.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an expandable and contractible keyboard device in which the aforementioned narrowing or necking of the elastic keyboard web is reduced.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an expandable and contractible keyboard device, which includes a plurality of keytops arranged on a plurality of elastic webs, wherein each web corresponds to a single row of keytops.